Cruz4Sun Posted November 18, 2023 #276 Share Posted November 18, 2023 On our recent cruise on the Caribbean Princess we tried both Planks and Steamers. Both venue's were very busy and fully reserved early in the cruise unless you wanted to dine at 8 p.m. Diners were not seated at all tables because there were only 3 waiters and 1 assistant. The same staff worked both options as Steamers and Planks were open on alternative days. We found the food and service to be very good at both restaurants. I did note that the plank entree at Planks included your choice of 2 meats (not 3 as shown in an older menu on this thread). The plank was huge and the meat portions generous. The steam pot at Steamers was large and try as I might I could not finish it. We would definitely go to both of these casual dining options again and even if we didn't have the plus package I personally felt it was worth the $14.99 upcharge. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canadarocks Posted November 18, 2023 #277 Share Posted November 18, 2023 Were you able to reserve the two restaurants when you first got onboard? Do you happen to remember which days each one was open? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wallyj Posted November 19, 2023 #278 Share Posted November 19, 2023 On 11/9/2023 at 8:56 AM, chamima said: We're currently on the Sapphire. Vines has changed it's casual dining option to a Sushi Platter available from 12 - 1:30. I had it last week. It was wonderful!!! 8 pieces of spicy tuna roll, 2 tuna sashimi, 2 salmon sashimi, small bowl of seaweed salad, small bowl of (really delicious!) edamame, small bowl of pickled vegetables and a shrimp sashimi. It was a large lunch but I plan to have it again and wouldn't mind paying the $14.99 even after our included meals are used. Hi @chamima, i am being a little picky in terminology. See post #274 and I believe that is the the menu that they are serving at Vines for sushi on the Sapphire or very similar. What you were served is NOT called sashimi as that is usually just a raw protein without rice, what you called sashimi, is called ‘nigiri’ which is usually a protein or item on top of a rice ball. FYI, on the my Discovery sailing last month, I was able to customize my nigiri selection, one time I requested all shrimp, another time, as I do not care for salmon, 3 shrimp and 2 tuna nigiri. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Michael4650 Posted November 19, 2023 #279 Share Posted November 19, 2023 16 minutes ago, wallyj said: Hi @chamima, i am being a little picky in terminology. See post #274 and I believe that is the the menu that they are serving at Vines for sushi on the Sapphire or very similar. What you were served is NOT called sashimi as that is usually just a raw protein without rice, what you called sashimi, is called ‘nigiri’ which is usually a protein or item on top of a rice ball. FYI, on the my Discovery sailing last month, I was able to customize my nigiri selection, one time I requested all shrimp, another time, as I do not care for salmon, 3 shrimp and 2 tuna nigiri. To me sashimi has also been raw fish no seaweed wrap Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruz4Sun Posted November 19, 2023 #280 Share Posted November 19, 2023 Embarkation night was Planks, second night was Steamers. I'm not sure I'd recommend the way I got the reservations. At noon on embarkation day I went up to Steamers and spoke to two waiters who told me to call the dine line. I explained the dine line doesn't answer so they tried and no answer. Just then a manager arrived and was told my issue. He proceeded to call direct lines that we passengers don't know and after about 7 tries he got someone on the phone that took my reservation. I heard on a different post of someone that went to the Planks desk when they opened at 5 p.m. and made reservations that way. I think I will give that a try on my next cruise. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kentgal Posted March 30 #281 Share Posted March 30 My husband and I are scheduled for the Ruby Princess in September. First time on Princess. We've only been on two other cruises, Norwegian and Celebrity. Both of those cruise ships had free dining or Specialty Dining. It was simple, you either paid or you didn't. Now there is this prix-fixe dining menu, Plus and Premier, which is just confusing to me. I think I'm finally getting it. But I'm confused on the International Cafe and Coffee and Cones. Are those included in Plus or not? I understand Premium can get unlimited desserts from Coffee and Cones, right? And what about people who don't have either Plus or Premium. Is anything "free" for those folks at these two places? Thanks for clarifying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
memoak Posted March 30 #282 Share Posted March 30 3 minutes ago, kentgal said: My husband and I are scheduled for the Ruby Princess in September. First time on Princess. We've only been on two other cruises, Norwegian and Celebrity. Both of those cruise ships had free dining or Specialty Dining. It was simple, you either paid or you didn't. Now there is this prix-fixe dining menu, Plus and Premier, which is just confusing to me. I think I'm finally getting it. But I'm confused on the International Cafe and Coffee and Cones. Are those included in Plus or not? I understand Premium can get unlimited desserts from Coffee and Cones, right? And what about people who don't have either Plus or Premium. Is anything "free" for those folks at these two places? Thanks for clarifying. IC is free. Buffet is free MDR is free and open for breakfast and dinner every day and lunch on sea days. Soft serve ice cream is free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kentgal Posted March 30 #283 Share Posted March 30 Thank you, I appreciate your response. So IC (International Cafe) is free? Free for everyone? No restrictions at all? What about Coffee and Cones? Also totally free for everyone? Where are the premium desserts served? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellipooh Posted March 31 #284 Share Posted March 31 23 hours ago, kentgal said: So IC (International Cafe) is free? Free for everyone? No restrictions at all? I *know* that the delicious specialty coffees and teas in the IC are priced per item if you don’t have a beverage package, but these are included/unlimited with the Plus/Premier packages. I *think* that the vast majority of the food items in IC are free 24/7 for everyone. I’ve *heard* that there are a few priced food items including yummy-looking pieces of cake that do qualify as a Specialty Dessert under the Plus/Premier packages and thus no additional charge. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kentgal Posted April 1 #285 Share Posted April 1 2 hours ago, Ellipooh said: I *know* that the delicious specialty coffees and teas in the IC are priced per item if you don’t have a beverage package, but these are included/unlimited with the Plus/Premier packages. I *think* that the vast majority of the food items in IC are free 24/7 for everyone. I’ve *heard* that there are a few priced food items including yummy-looking pieces of cake that do qualify as a Specialty Dessert under the Plus/Premier packages and thus no additional charge. Ellipooh - Thank you! I appreciate your response. This is very helpful. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NavyVeteran Posted April 1 #286 Share Posted April 1 2 hours ago, Ellipooh said: I *know* that the delicious specialty coffees and teas in the IC are priced per item if you don’t have a beverage package, but these are included/unlimited with the Plus/Premier packages. I *think* that the vast majority of the food items in IC are free 24/7 for everyone. I’ve *heard* that there are a few priced food items including yummy-looking pieces of cake that do qualify as a Specialty Dessert under the Plus/Premier packages and thus no additional charge. The following statements are based on a cruise on the Carribean Princess last year with Premier. I only *know* what happened on my cruise - I *think* it would be the same on other cruises on other ships. I *know* that your first statement was correct. I *know* that your second statement was also correct on my cruise. I *know* that there were few cakes in the IC that are included under Plus (2 per person per day)/Premier(unlimited) but would cost extra without the packages. Note that even though we had Premier, there was no way we would eat more than one of these cakes each per day. The serving was very large - large enough for two people. When I took the cake from the IC to a table, no one complained when I shared it with DW. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atomic2024 Posted April 7 #287 Share Posted April 7 (edited) Maybe a dumb question, never cruised with Princess before. Say if you’ve exceeded the allowed prefix menu items per person, would it be safe to assume that the additional items will be charged a la carte? Edited April 7 by Atomic2024 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skynight Posted April 7 #288 Share Posted April 7 17 minutes ago, Atomic2024 said: Maybe a dumb question, never cruised with Princess before. Say if you’ve exceeded the allowed prefix menu items per person, would it be safe to assume that the additional items will be charged a la carte? Yes. But you most likely will not exceed the menu. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canadarocks Posted Friday at 05:22 PM #289 Share Posted Friday at 05:22 PM Is there any difference at all between GiGi's and Alfredo's? Their menus look completely identical. Why the rename? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dides Posted Friday at 06:48 PM Author #290 Share Posted Friday at 06:48 PM Now including Sun Princess menus and updates - Kai Sushi is speciality dining on Sun but some chatter about a special lunch menu (tbc) Venue (with menu for logged in users) A la carte charges $14.99 cover charge includes Ships Alfredo’s Alfredos 2.pdf Alfredo's - Sun Princess (no pasta dishes) Alfredos-Sun.pdf Appetizer $5.50 Pizza $8.50 Pasta $8.50 Special Pizza $12 Dessert $4 1 x Appetizer 1 x Pizza or pasta 1 x Dessert Majestic Regal Royal Sky Sun Star Alfredo’s reduced menu Alfredos 1.pdf Appetizer $5.50 Pizza $8.50 Dessert $4 1 x Appetizer 1 x Pizza 1 x Dessert Coral Grand Island Sapphire GiGis GiGis.pdf Appetizer $5.50 Pizza $8.50 Pasta $8.50 Special Pizza $12 Dessert $4 1 x Appetizer 1 x Pizza or pasta 1 x Dessert Discovery Enchanted Ocean Terrace Ocean Terrace.pdf Ocean Terrace Fixed Price menu on Sky OceanTerraceSky.pdf Appetizer $3 Starters $14/$12 Nigiri $5 Sashimi $5 Combis $7/$13 Maki Rolls $5 1 x Appetizer 1 x Nigiri or Sashimi 2 x Maki Rolls (except Sky - see different menu) Discovery Enchanted Majestic Regal Royal Sky Salty Dog Gastropub SALTY DOG GASTROPUB.pdf Plates $10 Desserts $5 2 x Plates 1 x Dessert Crown Discovery Emerald Ruby Vines Vines.pdf Crudités $3 Charcuterie Board $12 Chocolate Truffles $3 1 x Crudités 1 x Charcuterie Board 1 x Chocolate Truffes Caribbean Crown Emerald Grand Majestic Regal Royal Ruby Sapphire Sky O’Malley’s O Malleys.pdf O’Malley’s - Sun Princess OMalleys-Sun.pdf Starters $5 Mains $10 Afters $5 1 x Starter 1 x Main 1 x After Enchanted Sun Star Kai Sushi Kai Sushi.pdf Starters $12/$14/$20 Noodles & Ramen $10-$15 Appetizers $4/$3 Nigiri Sushi $5 Sashimi $5 Maki Rolls $5 Combis $7/$13 Dessert $3 1 x Appetizer 1 x Nigiri Sushi 1 x Sashimi 1 x Maki Roll 1 x Dessert Diamond Planks Planks.pdf Starters $5 Planks $12 Extra Meat $4 Desserts $3 1 x Starter 1 x Plank 1 x Dessert Caribbean Emerald Steamers Steamers.pdf Starters $5 Steamer $12 Seafood Platter $12 Add Lobster Tail or Snow Crab $10 Desserts $3 1 x Starter 1 x Steamer or Seafood Platter 1 x Dessert Caribbean Emerald 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruz4Sun Posted Friday at 11:04 PM #291 Share Posted Friday at 11:04 PM Just got off the Emerald Princess. Here are my thoughts on the casual dining. Upon embarkation I walked over to the World Fresh Marketplace and used a house phone to call the dine line. I was able to make reservations for the Salty Dog Gastropub and Planks on the dates and times I wanted. Our dinner at Planks was great, the barbeque meats are tender and served with many tasty sides. We skipped dessert as the 2 choices did not appeal to us. Our dinner at the Salty Dog Gastropub was a mixed bag. The asparagus appetizers were delicious. The SDG burger was good but slightly overcooked. The short rib entrée was fatty and had more sauce than meat. Next time we will skip this option and go to Steamers instead. . 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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